Beneath the Surface
by SpazKit
Summary: Victoria is caught up in a whirlwind of troubles... Her master offeres a hand.


Inspired after watching Hellsing all afternoon. Again. I fell asleep on episode 9 and suddenly it was thirteen…  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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Beneath the Surface  
  
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She could smell the blood. She could smell it from here. And for once she did not hunger for it.  
  
Celes Victoria crept quietly into the abandoned apartment building. The place had a musty smell, tainted by the blood that lingered somewhere in the lower levels. Her gun was gripped tightly in her gloved hands as she moved silently behind the other troops of the elite forces known as Hellsing. The peeling wallpaper did nothing to lighten the dark and dreary atmosphere.  
  
They were after another of the FREAKS, this time an unnamed man whom took delight in torturing his human victims before slitting their throats to drink. She'd seen the profile of the man. Tall man, with a neatly trimmed beard and sharply dressed in a black suit. Hardly someone you'd expect to be a freak… Fergeson had announced that their target was in the lower floors of this rank building, and so they journeyed to end his pitiful existence.  
  
As Victoria crept down the decaying staircase, she sniffed the air. She sensed…something. Or someone. Master? …No. He was else ware. She winced, remembering their earlier words…  
  
"Master! Why are you acting this way?" she had cried, trying to keep up with his receding scarlet form. Alucard had emerged from Integra's office with a scowl on his face, he had obviously had some dispute with the woman. Walter had followed at length, a frown upon his lips. Victoria had followed her master, in her innocence, trying to figure out what was wrong. When she had gotten close enough, she'd grabbed his arm. Alucard had roared in anger, flinging her away, throwing the young vampire across the room. She'd hit the wall hard, wincing in pain.  
  
"Get away from me, police woman!" He'd hissed, his eyes the color of burning blood. That had been two days ago… Victoria had not seen him since. She sighed. His anger and rage towards her had… hurt her. Even now, she felt the sting of regret. She should not have hindered him. I'm sorry, Master…  
  
Sighing, she shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts of the emotional pain and focus on the task at hand. After all, she was a vampire. She was dead. Perhaps she should be more like Alucard, and try to act dead and unemotional. Perhaps then he'd be pleased with her.  
  
Suddenly, one of the points of the squad halted, and waved the team down. Victoria squatted, gripping her weapon. What had he seen?  
  
Out of nowhere, someone began to shoot at the Hellsing squad. Victoria cried out in agony when something hit her in the shoulder and side. A bullet? She dodged, rolling against a decrepit wall. Looking down upon herself…. No. Silver bullets. Silver bullets that were incinerating her insides… it hurts!  
  
"Victoria!" Fergeson's voice rang out from her radio. Before she could reply, she gasped in horror when a fellow Hellsing troop's head was blown off, the blood splattering across the dusty floor.  
  
"Retreat!" The new captain ordered, the mysterious hail of silver bullets not wavering in their assault. Before they could escape through the abandoned hallways, a defending rumble shook the structure. Out of nowhere, Alucard appeared, the brim of his hat flashing into Victoria's view. Before she could even call out his name, another roar ripped through the building, and it was either her agony or the building itself, but everything seemed to shake and quiver. Alucard was before her, shaking as well, his gloved hands blurry. Victoria was aware of him, reaching out to her… and then darkness.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Fka…"  
  
…  
  
"Victoria…"  
  
…  
  
Celes winced, and tried to cough up the blood that was resting in her lungs. She spat, and tried to open her eyes. She realized she was either blind or that she was in complete darkness. The blinding pain and agony in her side was distraction enough, and she really didn't care where she was. She just wanted the pain to go away.  
  
She moaned involuntarily, huddling further into a little ball. It was cold. Colder than normal. Even as a vampire, the biting chill licked at her bones. She blinked, though it did her no good. She could not see anyway.  
  
Whimpering, she reached a hand out from her balled form, touching a sharp and cold surface.  
  
"Do not move, police woman," her master's voice suddenly boomed, startling the young girl. In the haze of pain, Victoria struggled to decipher if Alucard was actually there, or simply in her mind. She groaned, but withdrew her hand. She placed it gingerly upon her side, her fingers touching the blood. She shivered.  
  
"M… Master…" She whispered harshly, unsure of what he wanted from her. He was probably angry with her, for being so oblivious to danger. "What happened?" She managed to get out, trying to keep her voice steady in the darkness.  
  
She heard Alucard snort. "The scum demolished the building. You are trapped beneath the surface." The vampire stated calmly. She still could not tell if he was really here or not. She realized that even as a vampire, she could very likely die down here. She shivered again. Buried. Alone.  
  
Sighing, Celes closed her eyes and tried to just… escape. She didn't want to talk about what had happened two days ago. She didn't want to be here. She didn't want to be alone, either. A spasm of pain rocked through her being and she bit her lip to stop herself from crying out. She didn't want to appear weak before her master. Never again.  
  
Victoria expected perhaps a laugh from Alucard, but not the soft sigh. She jumped and jolted when she felt a fingertip upon her mouth. Alucard /was/ really here. He wiped the blood away and she could hear him suckling his digit.  
  
"Fka…" He said gently. His tone startled her. Another flash of searing pain filtered through her being and she began to shake uncontrollably. She found herself wondering again if she was going to die.  
  
There was the soft sound of shuffling cloth. Still shaking from pain and cold, Victoria's eyes flew open wide when she felt Alucard come up behind her, bracing himself against her back. She trembled against him.  
  
"Mas-ster?" She hissed through clenched teeth.  
  
"Quiet, Victoria," he ordered, his breath brushing against her ear. She was close enough to feel his warmth, and inhaled sharply when her master slid his arm around her waist, careful to avoid the wounded area. His gloved hand rested just below her breasts, tucking the girl against the shape of his tall body. For a vampire, Alucard was warm, his heat radiating against Celes.  
  
"Mast-"  
  
"Sshh, Fka, and do not disobey me. You are hurt. Do not speak and rest now," His deep voice rumbled against her back. A few wisps of his hair brushed against her cheek. His normally sharp and disconcerting low voice was soothing to her. Celes sighed, and fell into a pained sleep beside her master. Alucard chuckled softly behind her, his nose buried in the soft of her blond hair. In the dark, the vampire held the girl close to his warm human body, and awaited Hellsing's forces to discover them.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Miss Victoria, can you hear me?"  
  
Celes opened her eyes to a dimly lit room. Her room. In the Hellsing institute. Confused, she waited for her blurry vision to clear. Her vision focused upon Walter leaning over her.  
  
"Ahh, Miss Victoria. You are awake, I am glad." Walter said, his eyes smiling. Victoria glanced down, and was relieved to find her wounds had mostly healed. Her russet eyes suddenly grew wide. How?  
  
"Walter-son? How did I get here?" She asked. The last thing she'd remembered was being… with Alucard…  
  
"Integra-sama had our people searching for you all night. We found you buried beneath a half ton of rubble, along with the rest of our men. You were lucky… others were crushed and killed," Walter explained. "Hellsing was set up. The entire building was rigged." He sighed, and reached over from his sitting place beside the bed. "You are still not completely healed. Here, drink this." He handed her a packet of medical blood. Weakly, Celes reached for it and barely managed to tear open the end with her sharp teeth.  
  
"You are to rest for another two days before returning to duty," he said as she suckled the blood from the pouch. "Fergeson is going to come speak to you later."  
  
She nodded and yawned, her eyelids drooping. Walter smiled, and took the empty pouch from her limp hand. "Rest well, Miss Victoria," he said softly as he turned, his dark ponytail falling to his back as he left the room. Walter paused before Alucard, the two looking back into the room at the now sleeping Celes Victoria. Nothing was said, but Walter just nodded and continued on his way. Alucard watched him go, then turned his attention back to the prone form upon the silken bed sheets. He watched her from behind his glasses for some time, his thoughts wandering from earlier events to his display of anger before the police woman several days ago. He cursed himself; he was feeling human emotions of guilt.  
  
Hissing quietly, he moved silently to her bedside and watched the young vampire sleep. He pulled the silk sheets up over her body, and backed away, melting into the walls. Celes moaned softly, snuggling into the new source of warmth, and dreamt. 


End file.
